cadet blogs

The weekend of April 15-17, I had the opportunity to attend a sailing regatta at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. As we entered the gates, I realized that the last time I had been at the Naval Academy was Summer Seminar 2009. Once we were on campus, I saw a group of fourth class midshipman, a group that I could have been a part of. It got me thinking about why Navy was my second choice, behind the Coast Guard Academy.

It was around seventh grade when I decided that I wanted to go into the military. Originally, due to my love of the water, the Navy was my choice. I joined the Naval Sea Cadet Corps to learn more about it, and found myself spending two weeks at Coast Guard Station Ocean City, Maryland. It was really my first exposure to the amazing men and women that make up the United States Coast Guard, and I enjoyed my time there so much that I was back again the next year, learning even more. As time went by, my aspirations slowly shifted toward the Coast Guard.

Then, the summer before my senior year, I attended the Naval Academy Summer Seminar (NASS) and the Coast Guard Academy Introduction Mission (AIM). At NASS, I arrived to warm, cheerful faces welcoming me to the Naval Academy. I received a guided tour, went to some classes, and had one day of mock plebe summer. At AIM, I stepped off the bus to be greeted by a uniformed second class cadet screaming at me to move faster. I had to stand at attention, greet upper-class, and memorize basic Coast Guard knowledge. AIM made NASS look like Camp Navy and further reinforced my decision to make Coast Guard my top school.

Now that fourth class year is almost over, I’m glad I made that decision. The size of the Coast Guard Corps of Cadets is smaller than the freshman class at Navy. It is less of a student body and more of an extended family. True, the fact that we fourth class now have carry-on definitely makes my outlook twice as bright, but even during Swab Summer I felt people looking out for me, people who had my back.

I don’t mean this to say that Navy is not a good choice, simply that it wasn’t my choice.